Packing machine



Sept. 29., 1970 KAPARE 3,530,644

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E. s. KAPARE 3,530,644 PACKING MACHINE 1 v 5 Sheets-Sheet I5 Sept. 29, 1970 7 Filed Feb. 5, 1968 INVENTOR smmmmmw United States Patent 3,530,644 PACKING MACHINE Erik Gunnar Kapare, Goteborg, Sweden, assignor to Billeruds, AB, Sallie, Sweden, a corporation of Sweden Filed Feb. 5, 1968, Ser. No. 703,137 Int. Cl. B65!) /06, 43/26 U.S. Cl. 53-187 5 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Packing machines are known which comprise on the one one hand a cassette with shelves for carrying objects to be packed in a certain packing pattern and on the other hand an expelling means for a displacement in common of the objects out of the cassette and further stationary guiding sheets extending from the discharge end of the cassette with the opening end of a cardboard box adapted to be put on said sheets. These packing machines, thus, are constructed for filling solid objects, say cans, in boxes and thus form stiff packages.

There are also known packing machines adapted to fill bags with powdered goods as e.g. flour. These machines comprise a device including two pressing plates, the Walls at the opening of a bag being in pairs insertable and clampable between these plates, the two pairs of clamp plates, thereupon adapted to be brought apart and the filling goods then being filled into the bag through a mouthpiece from above. Thus, the machine makes it possible to fill bags with powdered goods which may be filled into the bag from above.

The present invention on the other hand has for its object to render possible an introduction into bags of firm objects.

A further object is to provide a packing machine having a cassette with shelves for carrying the objects to be packed in a certain pattern, with an expelling means for a displacement in common of the objects out of the cas-- sette, with a device for moving apart the walls at the opening end of the paper bag in front of the side of the cassette opposite to the one at which the expelling means is situated, and with a table in a plane that is essentially vertical adapted to receive the bag when the latter has been filled with objects, as well as to swing the bag in such a way that its bottom is turned downwardly.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device for opening the bag comprising on the one hand two vertically operating pressure pistons to clamp the bag walls at the opening end with horizontal guiding plates extending along essentially the whole of the width of the packing pattern to keep the bag opening in open position during the filling, and on the other hand two lateral guiding plates to be swung from a position partly covering the discharge end of the cassette against the inside of the walls of the bag being vertical at the filling position of the bag.

A further object is to provide a packing machine having an elevator to lift, in steps, objects to be packed which are inserted in rows on carrying rails or the like in the elevator. The elevator is provided with a releasing means to render possible a discharge from the upper end of the elevator of a predetermined number of successively arranged grooves extending from the elevator arranged one above the other. A sealing machine is provided with means for closing the opening end of the bag filled in the packing machine.

The invention makes it possible to perform practically completely automatically the packaging of the objects in the bags and the closing of the latter. However, the insertion of the opening ends of the bags in the clamping means of the packing machine is preferably carried out manually. This work can be easily carried out by an unskilled worker which at the same time can watch the correct functioning of the plant.

The invention will now be elucidated with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the plant,

FIG. 2 is a side elevation on a somewhat enlarged scale of the packing machine with conveyor grooves for tllile objects to be packed connected to the packing mac me,

FIG. 3 shows a plan view, partly in horizontal section, of the packing machine,

FIG. 4 shows on a somewhat reduced scale a vertical section through the packing machine on the line IVIV in FIG. 3,

FIGS. 5, 6, and 7 show similar vertical sections through the packing machine showing the same in different phases during the packing process,

FIG. 8 shows on an enlarged scale a side elevation of the cassette belonging to the packing machine, and

FIG. 9 shows a vertical section through a device for glamping and bringing apart the opening end of a paper ag.

The plant shown in FIG. 1 comprises the following main parts, viz an elevator 1, a packing machine 2 and a closing machine 3. To the feeding end of the elevator 1 is connected a conveyor 4 for feeding the objects to be packed which in the shown embodiment are supposed to comprise cylindric preservation cans 5. From the discharge end of the elevator 1 there extend obliquely down towards the packing machine 2 a number of conveyor grooves 6 and in the shown embodiment there are arranged four such grooves. Due to longitudinal slots 7 in lateral posts 8 and attachment screws 9 which are attached to the grooves and extend through the slots 7, the grooves may be vertically adjusted and also the inclination of the same be adjusted. A roller conveyor 10 is arranged between the packing machine 2 and the sealing machine 3.

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THE PACKING MACHINE There is in the stand 36 of the packing machine 2 on somewhat inclining guide rods 37 by means of hydraulic piston and cylinder units 38, 39 displaceable a cassette 40 which is provided with a number of shelves 41 with intermediate spacing sleeves 42 through which extend posts 43 in the corners of the cassette. The shelves 41 also incline somewhat from a continuation of the conveyor grooves 6 at the lower ends of the latter so that the cans 5 may roll off from the grooves 6 and down onto the shelf 41 in question. Each one of the shelves takes up a row of six cans. The end of the cassette remote from the grooves 6 is provided with an abutment in the shape of a wall 44. An expelling means 45 is displaceable perpendicularly to the rolling in direction of the cans 5 into the the cassette 40. This means 45 has the shape of a fork with the fork pins 46 engaging in the interspaces between the shelves 41. The expelling means is carried by a carriage 47 which on rails 48 is displaced by means of a hydraulic piston and cylinder unit 49, 50. By means of the expelling means 45 the cans 5 may be displaced in their longitudinal direction completely out of the cassette 40 into a paper bag 51 adapted to be arranged in the packing machine as described more clearly in the followmg.

At the side of the cassette situated opposite the expelling means there is at the top arranged a device 52 for maintaining and bringing apart the portions 53 of the opening end of the paper bag situated opposite each other. The device comprises on the one hand a stationary tongue 54, one of said portions 53 being clampable between tongue 54 and the free end 55 of the piston 56 in the hydraulic cylinder 57, and on the other hand a tongue 58 for the opposite portion 53 of the opening end of the paper bag which is clampable between tongue 58 and the free end 59 of a piston 60 in another hydraulic cylinder 61. Tongue 58 is by means of a hydraulic piston and cylinder unit 62, 63 displaceable in vertical direction from the position in FIG. 7 to the position in FIGS. 5 and 6 and back to the original position.

Adjacent the lower edge of the cassette at the discharge end of the packing machine there is journalled a twobranched table 65 which is swingable about a somewhat inclining shaft 64 extending parallel to said edge, said table being swingable by means of a hydraulic piston and cylinder unit 66, 67. The table branch 68 serves as a carrying means for the paper bag 51 during its filling with cans while the table branch 69 serves as a support for the bottom 70 of the bag. The table branch 69 is shaped essentially as a U (FIGS. 1 and 3) with a removed central part 71 which gives space for the drive rollers 72 of the roller conveyor 10situated below when the table 65 is swung down to the position shown in FIGS. 1 and 7. At its end, being the left one according to the FIG. 2, the table branch 69 is provided with a flap 73 swingably carried about a shaft 74 extending in the plane of the table branch. The flap 73 is swingable by means of a hydraulic piston and cylinder unit 75, u

76 in such a way that the flap when the table 65 is swung to the position shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 supports the left hand side of the bag 51 according to FIG. 2 (the bag being not shown in FIG. 2).

Two similar guiding flaps 77 are at their edges turned from each other journalled about essentially vertical shafts 78 on the cassette 40. These flaps serve for keeping apart the side portions of the opening end of the bag 51 during the displacement of the cans 5 in the bag.

Clamping means 79 are arranged at the lower end of the conveyor grooves 6, these means 79 being pressed, by the hydraulic piston and cylinder units 80, 81, against the ends of the lowermost cans in the four rows of cans.

A paper bag 51 is put with the opening parts 53 above and below the tongues 54, 58 and is clamped thereupon automatically by the piston ends 55, 59. When the piston 62 thereupon moves down into the cylinder 63 the bag 51 is completely opened. The table 65 is swung by the hydraulic piston and cylinder unit 66, 67 to the receiving position shown in FIG. 5. When the six lower cans 5 in the rows of cans, situated one above the other on the conveyor grooves 6, roll into the cassette 40 and hit the abutment 44, there is given in a way not illustrated more closely in the drawings an impulse to a valve in the conduit to the hydraulic cylinders 81 whereby the clamping means clamp the cans situated foremost to the left on the conveyor grooves 6. An impulse is then given automatically to a valve in the conduit to the hydraulic cylinder 39 which causes the cassette 40 to be displaced a short distance, e.g. 30-50 mm., to the left according to FIGS. 2 and 3. An impulse is now given to the hydraulic cylinder 50 which causes the expelling means 45 to be displaced to the left from the position shown in FIG. 5 to the position shown in FIG. 6, this causing the cans in the cassette 40 to be displaced through the opening end of the bag 51 into the latter. At a displacement of the cans 5 in their longitudinal direction into the bag 51, the fiaps 77 are forced to swing from the positions shown with unbroken lines in FIG. 3 to the position shown with dash and dot lines in the same figure and then also the side portions of the opening of the bag 51 (the bag being not shown in FIG. 3) is kept open. So as to prevent the pattern of the cans in the cassette 40 to change at the displacement of the cans into the bag 51, the flap 73 which in this receiving position is folded up, abuts (shown with dash and dot lines in FIG. 2) against the left hand side of the bag which due to the inclination of the machine is exposed to a considerable pressure from the cans. After this filling of the bag 51 the table 65 is swung by the piston and cylinder unit 66, 67 to the position shown in FIG. 7, in which position the rollers 72 in the roller path 10 reach up into the aperture 71 and move away the bag 51 with the cans standing on the bag bottom in the direction of the arrows 82 and 83 (FIG. 1) to the sealing machine 3.

So as to facilitate the folding out of the bottom 84 of the bag 51 clamped at the opening (see FIG. 9) it may according to a suitable embodiment of the invention be advisable to provide the packing machine with a number of nozzles 85 connected to a source of pressure air (not shown) these nozzles directing a strong air stream into the bag 51. When this air stream (or these air streams) hit the bag bottom 84, the latter is folded from a position tight against one side of the bag to a position perpendicularly out from the same, approximately to the position shown in FIG. 9. The opening up of the bag 51 is thereby facilitated.

The invention has been described in the foregoing for purposes of illustration only and is not intended to be limited by this description except as defined in the appended claims. Thus, the machines may be constructively modified in many ways without departure from the inventive idea. Other cans 5 than cylindrical and rollable may be packed. Further, other objects than cans may of course be packed in paper bags. The bags may have different sizes. The plant should be such as, when having packed objects of a certain diameter and length, it may be adjusted for packing objects of another diameter and another length. Certain of the details of the packing machine 2 should be adjustable. The shelves 41 in the cassette should e.g. be adjustable in vertical direction or alternatively the whole cassette be replaceable against another one with other dimensions in vertical and horizontal direction. The hub length of the expelling means 45 should be adjustable. The number of objects to be packed in each row is independent of the invention. Instead of hydraulic operation of the different details of the plant, it is also possible to carry out the operation pneumatically or even electrically or electro-mechanically.

What I claim is:

-1. An automatic packing machine comprising a stand, a cassette mounted on said stand having a discharge end, means in said cassette for objects to be packed in a predetermined packing pattern, expelling means located at a side of said cassette for displacing said objects out of said cassette, means for separating the walls at the opening end of a paper bag located at the side of said cassette opposite to said expelling means, a table pivotable in an essentially vertical plane to receive said bag when filled with objects and pivot said bag so that the bottom of said bag is downward, said means for separating the walls comprising two vertically operating press pistons, an upper and a lower horizontal guiding plate extending along essentially the whole width of the packing pattern to keep the bag opening in open position during the filling operation, said pistons clamping the bag walls to said plates at the opening end of said bag, and two lateral guiding flaps on said cassette movable from a position partly covering the discharge end of said cassette towards the inside of the walls of said bag when said bag is in the filling position.

2. A packing machine as claimed in claim 1, wheren means are provided for moving said lower horizontal guiding plate essentially vertically together with its c0- 5 operating clamping piston to a position below said cassette.

3. A packing machine as claimed in claim 1, wherein said table comprises two branches forming an angle with each other, one of said branches being joumalled on said stand to support one side of said bag and the other branch forming an abutment for the bag bottom and carrying said bottom after pivoting of said table.

4. A packing machine as claimed in claim 1, wherein a flap is pivotally mounted on said table to serve as a support for one side of said bag during its filling.

5. A packing machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein nozzles connected to a source of compressed air are arranged in front of the clamped open end of said bag for bringing apart the bag walls, said nozzles momentarily directing jets of compressed air into said bag when clamped at its opening end.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS TRAVIS S. McGEHEE, Primary Examiner R. L. SPRUILL, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

